South Dundas council promised library space in Williamsburg, but the unexpected $200,000 price tag now attached to the project has left them all with sticker shock.
“We didn’t expect the costs to come in at that level,” said South Dundas chief administrative officer Steve McDonald, at the May 20 council meeting.
The recent tender for an addition to and renovation of the North Williamsburg Recreation building to accommodate the Williamsburg library branch attracted four bids.
The bids ranged in price from the low bid by Wells & Son Construction of Morrisburg at $209,841 to a high of $372,900. The Wells bid was $80,000 less than the next lowest bidder.
Council deferred acceptance of the bid, instead directing staff to meet with Wells to determine if together they can identify any potential cost savings.
No member of council was willing to accept the tender price until after the value exercise takes place.
“It’s costly, but we fought to get here,” said South Dundas councillor Archie Mellan. “If there’s a cost savings to be realized we need to look at that. But, I don’t want this to drag on. We’ve got to get this wrapped up at the next meeting.”
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